News & Multimedia

Where Are They Now? Sterling Marlin

June 22, 2012 | By Jan Shaffer

The story went around in NASCAR garages everywhere at the time.

NASCAR driver Coo Coo Marlin, his wife, Eula Faye, and their son Sterling were sitting at the dinner table one night. Coo Coo, rapid fire, said “pass-the-potatoes-please-Sterling’s-going-to-run-Talladega.”

Thus began the career of Sterling Marlin, a second-generation driver who carved his way after his father, one of NASCAR’s top independents, as they were called at the time, was winding up a distinguished career of his own.

When Sterling Marlin retired in ‘08 from the NASCAR Cup wars, he had made 748 starts with 216 top-10 finishes, 10 wins and 11 poles. He won the Daytona 500 back-to-back in 1994-95, and no one has repeated that feat. He won three straight poles at Daytona between the track’s two Cup races.

And he made his mark at the Brickyard 400. He started third in 1995 and finished second to Jeff Gordon in 2001 among 13 starts at the Speedway. He was one of the first NASCAR drivers to call the Speedway front stretch “the tunnel” because NASCAR drivers weren’t used to running with grandstands on both sides of the track.

Marlin’s Cup career is over. But he’s not quite “retired.”

At Nashville Superspeedway, the track where he and his father first started their careers, he still takes the flag once in a while.

“Just to have fun,” said Marlin, 55. “We won three out of six last year, and we’re running seven races this year.”

Today, Marlin lives on an 800-acre ranch near his hometown of Spring Hill, Tenn., and has a driver development program for those on their way up.

“I don’t have much time to do anything else,” he said.

Marlin’s son, Steadman, ran 28 Nationwide races and a few in the Camping World Truck Series. But he is not driving this year.

“It costs a lot of money to run a full season,” Sterling said. “Steadman’s 31. It’s the 15-16-17-year-olds who are going to be the next group.”

Now Viewing

Where Are They Now? Sterling Marlin

June 22, 2012 | By Jan Shaffer
NASCAR driver Coo Coo Marlin, his wife, Eula Faye, and their son Sterling were sitting at the dinner table one night. Coo Coo, rapid fire, said “pass-the-potatoes-please-Sterling’s-going-to-run-Talladega.”

February 23, 2015 | By NASCAR.com
The record will reflect that Joey Logano won Sunday’s 57th Daytona 500 under caution, when a multicar wreck on the backstretch forced NASCAR to wave the yellow flag as Logano led the field into the final corner on the second lap of a green-white-checkered-flag finish.

February 12, 2015 | By John Schwarb
With the same format in place for 2015, which four drivers might we see at Homestead this time in the title fight? Might it be a completely different foursome than 2014?

February 10, 2015 | By John Schwarb
In the Series there are enough new storylines to require a primer going into the season opener next week at Daytona. Here are five that you’ll hear plenty about as the weeks roll on.

January 22, 2015 | By Hendrick Motorsports
Jeff Gordon, the celebrated stock car champion whose crossover appeal helped take NASCAR into the mainstream, will compete in his 23rd and final full-time Sprint Cup Series season in 2015. He announced his decision this morning to the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports team he has driven for since November 1992.